Centrifugally casting machine



Feb. 11,1947. H. J. woocK 2,415,620

' CENTRIFUGALLY CASTING MACHINE Fil'ed Jan.22, 1943 l 2 Sheets-Sheet 1INVEN TOR.

'. I 81% {i M ATTORNEY.

"Feb. 11; 1947;

CENTRIFUGALLY CASTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 22" 1943' 2 Sheets-Sheet 23519350 (I WOCK,

INVENTOR.

BYWQf' H. J. wbocK 15 5 0 I Patented Feb. 11, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE CENTRIFUGALLY CASTING MACHINE 2 Herbert John Woock, Alhambra,Calif.

Application January 22, 1943, Serial No. 473,214

11 Claims.

This invention relates to a centrifugal casting 7 machine and may beregarded as a continuationin-part of my copen-dlng application filedJanuary 22, 1943, Serial No. 473,213.

An object of the present invention is to provide a casting machinewherein there are drag and cope retaining elements rotatable about acentral axis and to provide means for conveniently separating them whichwill facilitate the removal of the completed casting.

More specifically, an object of the invention is to provide a castingmachine wherein there are a cope and drag retaining elements havingdisposed therebetween, the copes and drags of individual dies whichprovide the mold cavities.

These dies may be, but usually are not, so formed as to produce castingsof the same size and shape and for any given die other correspondingdies may be substituted therefor.- By means of the present machine anumber of various dies may be assembled together with the cope anddrag-- retaining elements, simultaneously poured centrifugally, andsimultaneously opened to remove a spider-like casting of which thedesired castings form parts.

Another object of the invention is to provide a casting machine havingthe above-mentioned characteristics which is so designed that theindividual mold cavities may be vented to permit the air initiallypresent in the mold cavities to be expelled therefrom by the metal as itfills the molds,'the arrangement being such that when the cope and dragretaining elements are separated that the metal which follows the airinto the vent passages will not lock or prevent separation and openingof the mold. 7

Still another object of the invention is to Provide a casting machine ofthe centrifugal type which has a, surrounding shield thateffectivelyconfines any metal which may leak from the dies or overflowthrough the vent passages and to provide a means for removing the shieldsimultaneously and automatically on openin the mold.

-With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will be mademanifest in the following detailed description and specifically pointedout in upon the line 5-5 upon Fig. 1 in the direction indicated.

Referring to the accompanying drawings wherein similar referencecharacters designate similar parts throughout, the improved castingmachine comprises a suitable base 10 mounted on a suitable foundation IIin which there is preferably formed a sump H to receive a cylinder l3.Within the cylinder l3 there is reciprocable a piston l4 and fluidpressure may be admitted to either end of the cylinder and exhaustedtherefrom such as by the conduits l5 and It to effect a raising andlowering of the piston. The piston rod supports a housing I8 for athrust bearing ID to the inner race of which there is secured a Verticalcentral shaft 20 that is connected to the drag support or drag retaininelement 2|. The vertical central shaft 20 slidably extends through Vbushings in the ends of a surrounding sleeve 22 that is rotatablysupported in bearings 23 provided on a cylindrical housing 24 on thebase I0. A pulley 25 is mounted on the sleeve and one or more belts 26are trained thereover and extend laterally through an opening in thehousing 24 to any suitable source of power, not shown.

0n the top of the sleeve 22 there is mounted a spider 21 which carriesupstandin rods 28 located diametrically opposite each other and whichextend through apertures 29 in the drag support 2|. secured to the coperetaining element 30. Thus, as the pulley 25 is driven the sleeve 22rotates therewith and the spider 21 with the rods 28 is likewiserotated. This causes both the cope retaining element 3|] and the drasupport 2| to also rotate around a vertical axis coincident with thelongitudinal axis of the shaft 20. As the shaft 20 is secured to thedrag support it likewise is rotated but this rotation however is nottransmitted to the piston M or the piston rod ll due to the presence ofthe thrust bearing I9.

the appended claims, reference is had to the accompanying drawings foran illustrative embodiment of the invention wherein:

Figure 1 is a vertical section through the casting machine embodying thepresent invention illustrating the mold in closed position;

Fig. 2 a horizontal section taken substantially upon the line 2-2 uponFig. 1 in the-direction indicated;

Between the cope and drag retaining elements there are positionedindividual dies generally indicated at 3|. Each die is so'formed andshaped as to provide a, mold cavity for the desired casting.

Each die has a cope 32 and a drag 33 and in addition thereto, there maybe associated with the dies suitable spacers 34 serving to properlyelevate it and hold the parts of the die between the master 6! cope andthe master drag.

The upper ends of these rods are In the preferred form of constructioneach die comprises merely a cope and a drag. However, in certain typesof castings the size and shape of the casting will require that the diebe made of three, four, or more parts to enable opening of the mold. Forpurposes of simplicity however I have illustrated each die as beingprovided merely by a cope and adrag and appropriate spacers 34. The,cope 32 of the individual dies and the spacers 34 thereon areillustrated in Fig. 3 in a position wherein they are supported on theirdrags before being attached to the cope retaining element 30. Inthecenter of the cope retaining element 30 ther is detachably secured areplaceablegate providing member 35 which provides a central gate 36.Centrally of the drag support there is detachably secured a baille plate31 which provides a bottom for the gate 36 and preferably providesrunners 38 .leading outwardly toward the individual dies.

When the mold is in closed position baflle plate 31 is designed to abutagainst the opposed face of the gate providing member 35 on a plane 33that is located in the same plane as the parting The copes of theindividual dies provide vent passages 42 leading from the forward innercorners of the mold cavities and these connect with leading to theatmosphere. As the mold is rocope retaining element.

then be removed as a single unit similar to a spider. These castings canthen be separated from. the metal of the runner and the metal of thevent passages.

It will be noted that with the vent passages arranged as shown that themetal therein as well as the .metal in the runners does not interferewith the opening of the entire mold.

As the drag support 2| is forced to descend by the piston l4 the links52 are pulled downwardly and cause the levers topull the shield 48downwardly. The links 52 being connected to the levers 50 at about theircenters, themovement of the shield downwardly is approximately at doublethe rate of that at which the master drag 2| descends. Consequently,when the mold is fully open as shown in Fig. 3, the shield descends to aposition facilitating removal of the castings. By varying the points atwhich the links 52 are pivotally connected to the levers'5l the rate atwhich the shield descends may be varied and the shield may be caused todescend to agreater extent than that illustrated in Fig. 3, if desired.When the mold has been opene and the casting removed pressure is againapplied through conduit lli and released throughconduit I5 causing themachine to return to the position shown in Fig. 1.

It will be noted that each individual die is separated from adjacentdies,.it being advantageous to leave small spaces 54 therebetween.Apertures may be formed in the drag support and if desired, similarapertures may be formedin the In machines of this character a quicksuccession of casting operations is apt to heat the die considerablyrendering it subject to damage or injury from burning or surfacecorrosion. By having spaces 54 present betated and metal is poured intothe gate 36 it is l0 and provide vertical guides for the slides 4'| on ashield 48 that surrounds the cope and drag retaining elements. Thisshield is connected by links 49 to levers 50 which are pivoted as at 5|to the housing 24. Links 52 are pivotally connected to the levers 53intermediate their ends and to arms 53 on the housing l8.

In the preferred form of construction all parts of the individual diesabove the parting line 40 are fastened to the cope retaining element 30such as by screws or bolts and all parts of the individual dies belowthis parting line may be fastened to the drag support 2|. With themachine in the position shown in Fig. 1, the metal is poured into thecentral gate 36, flows outwardly through the runners and fills the moldcavities. Some of the metal eventually flows into the vent passages andmay overflow from the apertures 25 where it is thrown outwardly againstthe shield 48. When the metal has sufficiently cooled to justify openingthe mold, pressure is admitted through conduit l5 and released fromconduit I6 causing the piston l4 to descend. This causes the dragsupport 2l to slide downwardly on the upstanding rods 28 and the mold tobe opened on the parting plane 39, 40. The various castings which willbe connected to each other ordinarily by the metal in the runners canwear.

tween the individual dies the rotating mold functions somewhat similarto a centrifugal blower the air being thrown outwardly between theindividual dies and cooling them. Thus, the dies can be kept adequatelycooled to permit a quick succession of casting operations.

There seldom is occasion to replace either the cope or the dragretaining elements. However, the size and shape and the number ofdesired castings may require a frequent replacement of the individualdies as explained in my copending application. In the event that any diebecomes damaged this die can readily be replaced without involving anygreat expense. The size and shape of the castings will to a large extentgovern the position and arrangement of the mold cavity in the die.

A feature of the machine resides in the fact machine is rotating ifdesired. Inasmuch as the thrust bearing I3 is interposed between thepiston l4 and the drag supporting shaft 20, such a movement can takeplace during rotation as well as while the machine is stationary. Inthis way the piston is not caused to rotate with the machine andconsequently it is not'subject to great wnn e the machine isillustratedas being rotatable about a vertical central axis this is not essential.The machine may, if desired, be rotated about a horizontal axis and insome in-.

stances such an arrangement is preferable in'that when the mold is openthe casting may be allowed-to ,drop out. Conventional electors may beincorporated in the copeand drag retaining elements and in the die copesand drags for electing the solidified casting. Such electors be- I bequickly performed.

ing common and well known in the art are not illustrated on thedrawingsFrom the above described construction it will be appreciated that anovel, simple, and highly eiiicient centrifugal casting machine hasbeendeveloped wherein replaceable and substitutable dies can be used andcentrifugally cast. Provision is made for-eventing the mold cavities topermit the air initially present therein to" be expelled therefrom sothat it will not be included in the casting. When the pouring operationhas been completed and the molten metal has adequately solidified themold and all of the individual dies can be ,simultaneouslyopened and thecastings removed therefrom. Thereafter, the mold and the individual diescan be easily and quickly closed and as the dies are adequately cooled asuccession of succeeding casting operations may Various changes may bemade in the details of construction without departing-from the spirit orscope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim: I

l. A centrifugal casting machine comprising a cope and a drag, means forrotating the cope, guide means for causing the drag to rotate with thecope but enabling the drag to be moved toward and away from the cape,means for raising and lowering the drag,and a shield normally disposedabout the cope and the drag, and means for causing the shield to belowered when the drag is lowered relatively to the cope. 2. Acentrifugal casting machine comprising a cope and a drag, means forrotating the cope,

guide means for causing the drag-to rotate with cope and a drag, meansfor rotating the cope, a

drag support, and links connecting the mentioned links to thespider onthe drag support. I

6. A centrifugal casting machine comprising a base, asleeve rotatable inthe base, a drag support having a portion slidable through the sleeve,

means for rotating the sleeve, a cope retaining element, a dragsupportedon the drag support,

a spider on the sleeve, rods connecting the spider with the coperetaining element through the drag support, means for raising andlowering the drag support, a shield surrounding the cope retainingelement and drag support, guide means for slid- -ably supporting theshield, levers pivotallyconnected to the base, links pivotallyconnecting the shaft supporting the drag, means for raising and loweringsaid shaft to move the drag toward and away from the cope, guide meansfor causing the drag to rotate with'the cope, a spider within.

levers t'o the'shield, aspider on the dragsupport relatively to whichthe drag support may rotate,

and links connecting the levers intermediate their ends to the spider onthe drag support.

7. A centrifugal casting machinevcornprising two mutually engageable anddisengageable mold-providing elements rotatable about the same axis,oneof said elements providing a gate for ingress of material to be castin the mold, a sleeve on the other side of the other element from thegate-providing element, means for rotating said sleeve, means connectingthe sleeve to said elements to cause them to rotate therewith, a

shaft slidable through the sleeve and connecting,

to said other element, and means for sliding said shaft to cause saidelements to engage and disengage.

8. A centrifugal casting machine comprising two mutually engageable anddisengageable mold-providing elements rotatable about the same axis, oneof said elements providing a gate for ingress of material to be cast inthe mold, a sleeve on the other side of the other element from thegate-providing element, means for rotating said sleeve, means connectingthe sleeve to said elements to cause them to rotate therewith, a

shaft slidable through the sleeve and connecting to said other element,and means including an anti-friction thrust bearing on the shaft forsliding said shaft through the sleeveto cause said elements to engageand disengage.

9. A centrifugal casting machine comprising.

two mutually engageable and disengageable mold-providing elementsrotatable about the same axis, one of said elements providing a gate foringress of material to be cast in the mold, a sleeve on the other sideof the other element from the gate-providing element, means for rotatingsaid sleeve, means connecting the sleeve element, a drag supported onthe drag support,

a spider on the sleeve, rods connecting the spider with the coperetaining element through the drag support, and means for raising andlowering the drag support.

5. A centrifugal casting machine comprising a base, a sleeve-rotatablein the base, a drag support having a portion slidable through thesleeve, means for rotating the sleeve, a cope retaining element, a dragsupported on the drag support, a, spider on the sleeve, rods connectingthe spider with the cope retaining element through the drag support,means for raising and lowering the drag support, and a shieldsurrounding the cope retaining element and drag support, links pivotallyconnecting the shield to the base, a spider on the to said elements tocause them to rotate therewith, a shaft .slidable through the sleeve andcon necting to said other element, and means including an anti-frictionthrust bearing on the shaft located on the opposite side of the sleevefrom said elements for sliding said shaft through the sleeve to causesaid elements to engage and disengage.

10. A centrifugal casting machine comprising two opposed mold-carryingelements adapted to have the copes and drags of individual moldsdetachably secured thereto, said mold-carrying elements being rotatableabout the same axis, one of said mold-carrying elements providing a gatefor ingress of material to be cast in the molds, a sleeve on the otherside of the other element from the gate-providing element, means forrotating said sleeve, a spider on the sleeve, means connecting thespider to the gate-providslidable through the sleeve and connected tosaid other element. andmeansrorslidlnssaidshatt to cause said otherelements to move toward and away from the gate-providing element.

11. A centriiuzal casting machine comprising two opposed mold-carryingelements adapted to have the copes and drags of individual moldsdetechably secured thereto, said mold-carrying elements being rotatableabout the same axis, one of said mold-coming elements providing a saidshaft through the sleeve to cause said other elementto move toward andaway providing element "1' J. WOOCK.

. REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

- UNITED s'm'ms m'mm's Number Name Date 1,329,179 Hflty "Jan. 27, 19201,693,283 Mix Nov. 27, 1928 1 012.net; PATENTS Number Country Date689,906 French June 3, 1930 OTHER REFERENCES The Principles of IronFounding, Moldenke.

2nd edition, McGraw-Hiil Book 00., pp. 548-49. Copy in Div. 3-

from the :ate-

